God's sovereign grace is just!

1

McClain

’s outline (which we will follow)

:1)

The Divine Sovereignty (Chapter 9)a)

The problem stated (1-

6) “Has the Word of God failed?”

b)

The explanation offered (7-13)

–

“physical descent cannot make one a Israelite”

c)

The objections answered (14-24)d)

The proof given (25-29)e)

A conclusion drawn (30-33)2)

The Human Responsibility (Chapter 10)a)

The Gospel is accessible to all (1-10)b)

The Gospel is offered to all (11-15)c)

The Gospel is not obeyed by all (16-21)3)

The Merciful Purpose (Chapter 11)a)

A present election (1-10)b)

A future restoration (11-24)c)

A final salvation (25-32)Outline

–

Romans 9:14-331)

The objections answered (14-24)a)

Text: “What shall we say then?

Is there

unrighteousness with God? Certainly not!

15

For He saysto Moses,

“I will have mercy on whomever I will ha

ve mercy, and I will have compassion onwhomever I will have compassion

.”

16

So then

it is

not of him who wills, nor of him who runs,but of God who shows mercy.

17

For the Scripture says to the Pharaoh,

“

For this very purpose I have raised you up, that I may show My power in you, and that My name may be declared inall the earth.

”

18

Therefore He has mercy on whom He wills, and whom He wills He hardens.

19

You will say to me then, “Why does He still find fault? For who has resisted His will?”

20

Butindeed, O man, who are you to reply against God? Will the thing formed say to him who formed

it

, “Why have you made me like this?”

21

Does not the potter have power over the clay, from thesame lump to make one vessel for honor and another for dishonor?

22

What

if God, wanting toshow

His

wrath and to make His power known, endured with much longsuffering the vessels of wrath prepared for destruction,

23

and that He might make known the riches of His glory on thevessels of mercy, which He had prepared beforehand for glory,

24

even

us whom He called, not

of the Jews only, but also of the Gentiles?”

b)

Note the questions / objections:i)

Is there

unrighteousness with God? (14)ii)

Why does He still find fault? For who has resisted His will? (19)

God's sovereign grace is just!

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c)

Answered

: Is there

unrighteousness with God? (14)i)

Calvin

: “Is there unrighteousness with God? Monstrous surely is the madness of the human

mind, that it is more disposed to charge God with unrighteousness than to blame itself for

blindness.”

ii)

Citing Moses(1)

Exodus 32

–

incident of the golden calf (a)

All sinned

: 32-3-

8, “

So all the people broke off the golden earrings which

were

intheir ears, and brought

them

to Aaron. …

5

So when Aaron saw

it,

he built an altar

before it. And Aaron made a proclamation and said, “Tomorrow

is

a feast to the

LORD.”

6

Then they rose early on the next day, offered burnt offerings, and broughtpeace offerings; and the people sat down to eat and drink, and rose up to play.

7

And the LORD said to Moses, “Go, get down! For your people whom you brought

out of the land of Egypt have corrupted

themselves.

8

They have turned aside quicklyout of the way which I commanded them. They have made themselves a molded

calf, and worshiped it and sacrificed to it, and said, ‘This

is

your god, O Israel, thatbrought you out

of the land of Egypt!’””

(b)

All under the wrath of God

: 9-

10, “the LORD said to Moses, “I have seen this

people, and indeed it

is

a stiff-necked people!

10

Now therefore, let Me alone, that

My wrath may burn hot against them and I may consume them”

(c)

All deserved to die

:(i)

But only 3000 were killed … the remainder permitted to live (26

-29)(d)

Paul’s argument is this:

(i)

All deserved to die(ii)

God in his grace granted (in this case the majority) some to live(iii)

Why? We conclude that God has His purposes and is sovereign in events of lifeand death!(iv)

And then cites Exodus 33:19, “I will be gracious to whom I will be gracious, and Iwill have compassion on whom I will have compassion”

(v)

And draws this conclusion: “So then

it is

not of him who wills, nor of him whoruns, but of Go

d who shows mercy”

God's sovereign grace is just!

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iii)

Citing Pharaoh(1)

Exodus 9:16, “Then the LORD said to Moses, “Rise early in the morning and stand beforePharaoh, and say to him, ‘Thus says the LORD God of the Hebrews: “Let My people go,

that they may serve Me,

14

for at this time I will send all My plagues to your very heart,and on your servants and on your people, that you may know that

there is

none like Mein all the earth.

15

Now if I had stretched out My hand and struck you and your peoplewith pestilence, then you would have been cut off from the earth.

16

But indeed for this

purpose

I have raised you up, that I may show My power

in